Housley is the second leading scorer amongst U.S.-born players, with 1,232 points (338–894). He held the record for most points by an American-born NHL player until Mike Modano surpassed it on November 7, 2007.

He is considered to be one of the best American defenseman ever, alongside fellow Americans Chris Chelios and Brian Leetch. However, Housley never won the Norris Trophy as the NHL's Top Defenseman, thanks in large part to playing in the same era and reaching his peak years at the same time as the likes of Ray Bourque, Paul Coffey, Chelios and Leetch (the four combined to win every Norris Trophy between 1985 and 1997), and that he spent considerable time during his career playing forward.

Housley never won the Stanley Cup, coming closest with the Capitals in 1998, where they were swept in the 1998 Stanley Cup Finals by the Detroit Red Wings. He played more NHL games without winning the Stanley Cup than any player in NHL history. Teppo Numminen is now the active NHL player who had play the most games without winning the coveted trophy: 1,372 at the end of the 2008–09 season.

On January 21, 2000, Housley played in his 1,257th NHL Game, the most ever at the time by an American, breaking the record held by Craig Ludwig. Housley went on to play in 1,495 NHL games. He held the record for games played by an American-born player for nearly seven years, until it was broken, on November 24, 2006, by Chris Chelios.